1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to lounge chairs having systems attached thereto for use in spraying water on a sunbather, specifically to a lounge chair having a misting system that is small in dimension and compactly positioned within recesses in the underside surfaces of the lounge chair's seat and arms so as to be substantially hidden from view during use, the lounge chair comprising two chair arms each having an approximate inverted U-shape so as to comprise a front support, a rear support, and an approximately horizontal arm member connected therebetween, each front support being attached to the chair seat near to its mid-section so as to be in proximity to a seated adult sunbather's knees, and the misting system further comprising two misting nozzles each strategically housed within the inside forward portion of one of the horizontal arm members and connected to a pressurized water source through a small-bore conduit, each nozzle being positioned directly opposed to the other nozzle and configured to emit a 360.degree. spray of fluid so as to provide an approximate 180.degree. arc of mist in both vertical and longitudinal directions over substantially the entire length of the lounge chair seat, the opposing sprays from the two nozzles impacting one another for nearly complete mist coverage of a seated sunbather between his or her neck and toes, and wherein the positioning and configuration of the nozzles causes the atomized mist from the nozzles to be confined between the sides of the chair during windless conditions. An on-off valve connected between the nozzles and the water source allows the sunbather to regulate the duration of the mist. The water-conserving design of the present invention also allows for multiple lounge chair hook-ups to a single garden hose, as well as attachment to the lounge chair of a small refillable pressurized canister, or pump tank, that suffices as a water source adequate to provide a sunbather misting relief during an entire day in the sun. Applications, while best suited for lounge chair use, are not limited thereto, and the sunbather misting apparatus of the present invention may also comprise chairs having other configurations, including folding or otherwise collapsible chairs.
2. Description of Prior Art
Devices for sunbathers are known which attach to a lounge chair and provide a misted atmosphere over the chair. Some can be adjusted to spray all or part of a sunbather sitting or reclined in the chair. Some of the known devices have at least six or more spray heads attached to rectangular, U-shaped, or H-shaped frames which underlie the frame of the lounge chair, while others comprise frames having multiple holes therein to provide adequate water spray to cool and refresh a sunbather. However, no prior art is known to have the advantages provided by the present invention.
The prior art believed to be most closely related to the present invention is the invention disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,613,731 to Aspinall (1997). Both the Aspinall invention and one embodiment of the present invention have multiple spray nozzles connected to flexible tubing, however, the Aspinall invention contemplates six nozzles to provide water spray coverage over a lounge chair, with two nozzles positioned laterally on the upper portion of the chair back on either side of the sunbather's head and oriented to spray in a forwardly direction, two nozzles positioned laterally on the lower portion of the chair seat on either side of the sunbather's feet and oriented to spray in an upwardly direction, and the remaining two nozzles each positioned on the inside of one of the chair arms and oriented to spray toward the sunbather in proximity to the sunbather's waist. The head and foot spray nozzles in the Aspinall invention are not directed toward one another and the mist created thereby would only laterally and minimally contact the mist created by the other adjacent spray nozzle. In addition, the mist from each Aspinall waist nozzle also would not fully contact the mist created by the other since the sunbather would be at least partially in the way. The water spray from the Aspinall invention would not be retained between the lounge chair arms. The Aspinall invention also contemplates a ball-valve to vary the water flow to its nozzles. In contrast, the present invention contemplates low water consumption at standard water pressures provided by municipal water systems or in the alternative at the water pressure provided by a small refillable pump tank. Also, the present invention only requires two nozzles to provide a complete atomized mist over a sunbather from neck to toe, allowing the sunbather's face and hair to remain dry during windless conditions. It is not known to have a small misting system compactly positioned within recesses in the underside portion of the arms and seat of a lounge chair, which comprises only two strategically placed misting nozzles that emit a 360.degree. spray of fluid so as to provide a 180.degree. arc of mist over the chair seat for nearly complete mist coverage of a seated adult between his or her neck and toes, the positioning and configuration of the nozzles also confining all mist between the sides of the chair during windless conditions.